His Lilac Queen
by Aenarion the White
Summary: All it takes is a gift, a reward, a miracle, a turning of the clock, to change one's world. To give back that what was taken, and erase that which would have been. To set the passage of time on a course unheard, unseen, unfathomed but moments before.
1. My Witch, My Warlock

**A/N - Welcome to the first instalment of my new Geass fic, inspired by several other fanfictions dotted around the community. It focuses on the idea that Lelouch instates himself as emperor, and attempts to achieve his goals without the Requiem, based largely on the fact that several of his closest family and friends have either stayed or come back to him. Primarily, the titular pink princess that everyone has on their body pillows. However, this is in not meant to be a fix-fic, and will derail itself one way or another. Prepare for a nice bucket of politics, war, espionage, confusing marriages and clashing emotions, as our favourite Emperor attempts to bring about Nunnally's world, and share it with those he loves.**

 **Warning, this will be a PSEUDO-HAREM, with politics playing a nice part on who Lelouch shares his name with.**

 **Buckle up, cause it's gonna be a long trip...**

* * *

 **His Lilac Queen: Part 0 - Due Divergence, Due Reward**

 **Chapter 1**

 **-My Witch, My Warlock-**

* * *

' _If something lives in plain sight, none shall notice its existence. Remove it, and everyone shall mourn it's passing. The human mind only comprehends change, which is why life is always celebrated after its conclusion. Should that which is removed become real once more, it's reincarnation will be cherished like never before.' - Aenarion Calidor_

* * *

And with that, Lelouch brought his gaze upon the sky, and upon the planet that hovered above them.

"I beseech the Collective Subconscious, do not halt the flow of time, do not stop that which is in motion." And with one final look towards those he once consider his family, he uttered the words that sealed their existence.

"And destroy those who would stand against it."

With a shuddering lurch, the rising column that represented the Sword of Akasha begun to dissipate, falling back down into the void from which it came. However, tThe entropy was not limited to the pillar, as its creators began to share its fate.

"Impudent brat!" roared the Emperor, even as his body began to dissolve. "Don't you see you've done! All your mother and I's life's work! This would have brought peace, a world without lies!" Noticing the horrific rate of his decay, Charles lunged at Lelouch, but before he could reach his son, finally dissipated into nothingness. Marianne didn't move, merely frowning melancholically at him, showing her endless disapproval, yet accepting her fate. But such meagre theatrics had no effect on the now-orphaned Lelouch, as his respect for her had long died, and so he glared right back, watching on in icy indifference as she disappeared for good.

With that threat finally dead, Lelouch collapsed upon the 'floor' of C's World, catching his breath, his body ultimately catching up to his mind. Rest. He needed rest, along with closure. So exhausted was he that he forgot the knight watching on in shock, nor did he notice the padded footsteps of his witch, as she walked up behind him and draped herself over his kneeling form.

"Suzaku, would you wait outside?" The Japanese knight was dragged from his stupor by the witch's request. He was meant to be finally confronting Lelouch, not being ordered out like a little lapdog. But then again, that's all he really was, wasn't it? He never had much say in his life, just a little pawn, moved and manipulated by those around him. In fact, Lelouch was one of the few who probably still saw him as a person...but that meant nothing. His role in Euphie's death outweighs any attachment they once shared.

And he was just seconds from voicing that when C.C continued. "There is only one exit from here, and we have no desire to run away. There is something that needs resolving, and it would be better if you did not bear witness." What did that mean? Was someone going to die? No matter, he had been waiting for 7 months, he could wait another hour.

"Very well, you have fifteen minutes."

"Forty, and no bargaining." The knight reluctantly nodded and departed, flashing out of C's World and into the material plane. A thick silence blanketed the two, now left alone in the blue dimension, as both attempted to quell their racing minds.

Silenced reigned for what seemed like hours, as the two wordlessly voiced their feelings. The quiet was eventually broken by the immortal, who by now had crawled into her warlock's lap, her face buried in his sternum, muffling her words, and in turn, the fragility of her voice. "So, where to we head now? You have what you desired, so do you plan to help me in turn, or do we part ways?

Silence. Suffocating, smothering, blanketing silence. Something began to constrict in her chest, emotions kept long repressed, fears left to fester for the better part of an aeon. It couldn't be happening again. Not again, she would not be cast aside again.

Lelouch didn't answer, his eyes downcast, concealed by his raven bangs. C.C continued, determined to find her answer. "Will you go back on your contract, against what you promised? Or am I still of use to you?" Her voice was getting consistently weaker as she spoke, each unanswered question compounding insecurities kept buried since the beginning of her contract.

Never before had her walls even fractured, so why did it feel like they were about to collapse. Why did this boy's silence bother her so much? Was he going to leave as well? She could take that, right? She could take being abandoned again, like she had over, and over, and over. Why did his silence...hurt?

"Am I just an asset to you, another of your many pawns." Lelouch didn't even move, even as her fingers softly tightened around his ribs. The verdette knew she was ranting, but continued anyway, for once, just happy to vent. "Is my power still useful to you? Do you need more code-users? My advice, my console, my presence, anything?" Her voice finally broke, the dam bursting at last. For once, she thought she had found someone like her. Alone and jaded, she had lost all reason to live, but was forced through centuries of gruelling existence. Decades of being nothing, of meaningless life.

Of loneliness.

But this boy, he had reignited that spark, kept under so many layers of snow. He had melted down her ice, found that fire kept hidden so deep. Treated her like a person, like a friend. Like she was special. And after so many years of isolation, she felt...happy. Sure, he was a brat, naive, arrogant, a workaholic, paranoid as hell, frequently treated her like a tool, and was as romantically adept as a depowered Knightmare Frame, but she could see past that...sometimes.

How many times had she jokingly invited him into bed, secretly wishing he'd accept, eager to feel his warmth? How many days had she waited in his room, awaiting his return, just to enjoy his presence? How many nights had she secretly cried herself to sleep after his disappearance, afraid she'd never see him again? She had to mean something to him, she was the only one who stayed with him from the beginning, never to doubt him. She was...she was...

"Am I important to you?" And with that, the tear finally fell. Slowly, weakly falling down one cheek, mingling with her scattered hair, before passing into his. Lelouch still said nothing, not reacting in the slightest.

...

...

...

"Cera..."

' _Bastard'_. And just like that she that, she knew she had lost. She couldn't leave if she wanted to, not when he said her name in that tender he had perfected. Not when he stared at her with those violet eyes, expressing concern she didn't know existed. "You mean far more that you could ever imagine."

"I bet you say that to all the girls." she retorted, but oh how her heart fluttered to new heights. She rarely dreamed, as most nights were filled with nightmares, but the few she had almost always featured that line somewhere or other.

"Like someone of my calibre would settle for anyone less." And there it was, that trademark arrogance, naturally he couldn't just let her have her moment. But if he didn't, it just wouldn't be...him. It was a part of the package, one that she would begrudgingly accept.

"I'm guessing ' _His Highness'_ would like some reward for his dashing escapades?" He looked up into her eyes, and whispered the words she had been waiting to hear.

"Cera...you're all I could ever need."

…

…

…

" _Pfffft hahaha hahaha_!" C.C fell right off her perch on his lap, their tangled hair forcing him to fall over her with a pained yelp. His limbs becoming entangled in her splayed form, her incessant giggles sending soothing vibrations through his chest. "That was... _heh heh_...god... _heh heh_...that... _pfft_...how corny." Her amusement shone from her eyes, the golden irises basking him with waves of contentedness. "Please tell me you were joking."

"Only slightly," he replied, his anxiety easing as he noticed her tension fading, before adopting a faraway look. "It's funny how you only notice things after they almost slip away."

"I know, I've felt it so many times, more than you could ever imagine."

"And it will never happen again, not if I can do anything about it." They stared into each other, as the two attempted to identify what is was they felt inside, what they dared dream for the two of them.

 _*Clap, clap, clap.*_

"How _touching_." Both their eyes snapped out of their content haze, locking with red irises, past the white hair that partially obscured them from sight. The albino smirked playfully at the couple as he appeared before them, his eyes broadcasting his amusement towards their antics. "Though it would look even better if we switched places, _Lulu_ "

"Mao? How are you here-...wait no, foolish question, pseudo-afterlife." Lelouch's head was filled with flashes, the snow-haired man's face forcing him to relive one of his most painful memories. "What do you want." It was impossible to hide the snarl from his voice, venom leaking from his lips, from every word. "I thought you'd be too busy to rotting in hell to pester me, or did the devil hand his job over to you."

"Close, but not quite." Mao's smirked, but then his smile widened, becoming slightly more genuine. "I'm the new avatar of C's World." C.C's eyes widened slightly, before softly smiling back at the Chinese man. It was a welcomed change to see him happy, and far too overdue for her tastes. Apparently, his new position gave him a higher sense of purpose, relieving years worth of insanity-causing pain from his psyche.

Lelouch still wasn't following, caught off guard by the man's apparent lack of anger, especially as he was in the arms of ' _his C.C_ '. "I...I believe I need an explanation."

"My Geass makes it possible to comprehend the thoughts and desires of anyone I chose, and apparently that extends to the Collective Conscious," he explained, not bothering to hide the smug tone. "So, seeing as I can hear the demands of _God_ , I was chosen to be their middleman."

"I...I see."

"No you don't, but it doesn't matter. As much as I love shitting around with you, I have business." Mao's posture suddenly straightened, losing the obnoxiously relaxed slouch he usually spouted. "Lelouch vi Britannia, if not for you, the universe as we know it would have ceased to exist. Only due to the work and sacrifices you made was the Sword of Akasha destroyed, and as such, we, the Collective Conscious, wish to offer a gift to show our gratitude.'

"I need no reward for doing the right thing." the prince said, his voice filled with absolute certainty. "It's been my dream for over a decade to kill that bastard, it's all the gift I could ever want."

"Perhaps you don't, but your service to the Collective Conscious, to the universe in general, demands our gratitude." Mao's tones began to morph, slowly adopting the ethereal resonance distinctive to the Collective Conscious. "The Dimensional Supervisor is also in your debt, and hopes to make your acquaintance soon."

"A Dimensional Supervisor?" he asked. "I was not aware such a thing existed, nor was required."

"Mao was only adopted as a speaker after his death." The Chinese man's voice had completely faded, now it was a genderless boom, thousands of speakers seeming to intermingle into a single voice. "D.S was, and always will be our official figurehead."

"...I hope I can fulfil its expectations of me."

"Without a doubt. But if you will not accept a gift from us, would you be so inclined to accept one from her?"

' _Her?_ ' It has a gender? "Perhaps…" he began, unsure how to continue.

" **Then on behalf of the Dimensional Supervisor, and in turn the Collective Conscious as a whole, we thank you, Lelouch vi Britannia!"** The booming proclamation reverberated through the spiritual realm, drawing Lelouch and C.C in its resonance. As the din settled down, Mao apparently had regained control over his body, a rare, swan smile gracing his lips. With an almost wistful gaze, he uttered words Lelouch thought impossible.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry."

There was a violent flash of light behind Lelouch, throwing him off his feet onto the cave floor, the luminous 'walls' of C's World being replaced by the grey stone of the Kamine Thought Elevator. Dazed and blinded by the sudden strobing flare, as well as the forced exit from the otherworldly plane, Lelouch took a second to recuperate, his eyes adjusting to the dimmer ambience of the subterranean passage. His clothing had changed, replaced with a nondescript black shirt and purple coat, both emblazoned in the icon of Geass. C.C had appeared almost on top of him, though she rolled off almost immediately, obviously more used to the abrupt shift between dimensions. He slowly stood, casting his gaze to his witch, and noticed her wide eyes, staring back at him-...no, not at him. Behind him, through him. He slowly turned, afraid of what could shock the otherwise unflappable immortal, and saw…

...saw...

"...Euphie?"

* * *

A/N - Give me feedback, please, I live off that stuff. Also, any complaints about characters or personalities should remain constructive, or you can go shove them so far up your...

Anyway, C.C is someone who was never given real attention as a human being before, and Lelouch is the only one to treat her like a woman, rather than a tool. Marianne lulled her into a fake sense of security before betraying her, Mao is insane and Charles...well, yeah. Stands to reason that she would want to stay with him, rather than just watch from the sidelines.

Mao makes perfect sense as a spokesperson if D.S is out, I mean, he can read minds. The Collective is just multiple minds, so it stands to reason that he can read them. Therefore, they would use him.

D.S is a real character though she never really was detailed. As is many other characters that _will_ be added. Along with my OCs, or course.

That's all from me, so I'll see you next time.


	2. Together Once More

**A/N - Well, rapid-fire update. Got a few chapters planned out, but still open suggestions**

 **HINT HINT - Send suggestions**

 **For those that care, no, I do not like Suzaku. He can go _ a _ while he _ a _ for all I care. I hate his mindset, his goal, his views and his creepy fixation on becoming Knight of One, which he spins as part of his quest for peace. Right, sure, of course, becomign the right-hand man of a genocidal dictator is sooooo peaceful. Whatever, he will be bashed.**

 **However, nobody is beyond redemption, sort of, so I will be lenient towards the little _.**

 **Anyway, enough from me (not that anybody reads this...) lets get into the chapter...**

* * *

 **His Lilac Queen: Part 0 - Due Divergence, Due Reward**

 **Chapter 2**

 **\- Together Once More -**

* * *

 _He slowly turned, afraid of what could shock the otherwise unflappable immortal, and saw…_

 _...saw..._

" _...Euphie?"_

* * *

Violet met lilac, eyes widened as far as could go, unwilling to believe the sight set before both of them. ' _Impossible, she was killed...shot...I shot her...I killed her...she's dead because of me_.' But there she stood before him, her long hair let down in rippling waves, a striking change from the two buns she always held them in. The rose strands blended perfectly into her clothes, a light purple loose-fitting dress, with what appeared to be a white collar piece that descended down to the edge of her shoulders, and the top of her breasts. The pink hem was cut in the shape of the Geass bird at both the collar and the breasts, declaring it a product of C's World.

"Lelouch?" Her voice was hoarse, dry from months of disuse, though her eyes were certainly wet enough. Tears began to drip down her face, splashing audibly on the wet puddles dotting the floor of the Elevator, though Lelouch was certain they hadn't been there before. "Lelouch! It's you… it's …* _hic_ *...it's really you!" And suddenly she was upon him, tackling him with a force he couldn't believe, glomping him as hard as possible, determined not to let him go. They quickly collided with C.C, who was brought down with them in the ensuing tangle, grabbing onto them both on reflex. "It's you it's you it's you it's you it's you…"

"Euphie?" he began, his voice strained, tears almost flying out from his eyes.

"God I've missed you I was so scared with the soldiers and the blood and your Geass broke and I thought you'd hate me for what I did and I know you felt like it was your fault but it's not because it was an accident and you didn't mean it and I forgive you and…"

"Euphie…"

"Andithoughtyoumighthavegottenhurtaswellandwhoisthatsexyverdettegirlyouwerewithdoyoulikeher…"

"EUPHIE!" His sudden exclamation shut her up instantly, as she flinched back from his strained expression. "AIR! NOW!" She tried to jump off him even quicker, releasing her uncharacteristically strong stranglehold on his fragile frame, and unleashed a torrent of rapid-fire apologies. As Lelouch stood and attempted to regain his lost air, the princess turned around, blushing up a storm.

' _Great first impression_.' she thought, her pout audible even in her thoughts. ' _Seven months of planning and I babble like a schoolgirl.'_

Suddenly a pair of arms were wrapped around her, pulling her into her own bone crushing embrace. She felt his head bury itself deep into her hair, and a small dampness seeping into her collar from where his face touched her skin. "Please, tell me this isn't some joke, some cruel play of the gods," he whimpered. "Please, is that you Euphie?"

She softly turned around in his embrace, and touched her forehead to his, staring deep into his irises. "It's me, Lulu, it's me…" Both pairs of eyes were damp with happiness, bliss unfelt since their childhood's past. Days of freedom and innocence, caring only for each other and themselves. Days long since forgotten and discarded, in the mire that was their tumultuous life. It was her, the girl...the young woman he had kept in his heart eternally, her smile, her eyes, her happiness, her beauty...there was not a single fault to be found within. Not amongst the care, gentleness, empathy, curious, understanding soul that seemed to touch all around her. The perfection he had been forced to shoot in cold blood, because of his mistakes.

His mistakes. His failings. What were his failings? He couldn't remember, not when there was a true angel in front of him. He felt peaceful, fulfilled, happy. When was the last time he had felt happy? Who cares, he was content now. Why was his brain so hazy, so cloudy? He could barely think straight. What was happening, was it some kind of drug? They say love was a drug. Why was he thinking that? Did he love her? Of course he did, he loved her more than anything else in the world. He felt safe and secure near her, happy and at peace. Peace, he hadn't felt peace since...since…

Since Euphie died.

"Euphie…" he asked, his voice stronger than before, but keeping a gentle tone. "How are you here. You're dead, I saw everything…"

"Well," she giggled, "you wanted a gift…"

"So you're real-ouch!" Something had softly but firmly smacked his cheek. He looked up to see Euphie move away, and lower her hand. "What was that for?"

She had puffed her cheeks out into her classic, adorable pout. "Lelouch vi Britannia," she said as she poked his nose. "I have waited the better part of a year to see you again, and I am not having you ruin it with your silly questions!" Lelouch decided to just wait out her impending rant, recognising her expression from their times at the Aries Villa. One that said ' _hear me out or I will give you the pouty puppy dog eyes from hell'_. Yet her face softened into a saddened frown, losing the childlike expression she so often carried. I had to watch, you know? I had to see you get hurt, over and over again. How you tried to keep all your pain to yourself, trying to bottle yourself up from others. I've seen how you try to like Atlas, despite the loneliness that comes with such a hard task. Always trying to carry the weight of the world by yourself, because everyone turned their back on you, on what you are. But even worse…" Her pout returned in full force, the bipolar swing in emotions almost physically battering Lelouch to the ground. "I had to bear witness to four girls flirt with you, over and over again. I actually started making bets with D.S. about which one you'd choose. How did you somehow get with none of them?!"

Lelouch began to realise with growing despair that his half-sister had witnessed everything that happened to him throughout the last year...including...oh please no...anything but...

"I was so bored once we made bets on how long you would last cracking one off, and I still lost to her." Lelouch started moving to escape, but she halted him with a wagging finger. Her smile was sadistic, knowing just how much torment she was putting her brother through. "No you don't, you're not getting away. I've been waited so long to say this, so you better sit still." Oh god, she had not just seen him naked, but with his literal hands down his pants, and had watched it with some level of interest. And had counted, every, single, _second_. "But seriously, I swear D.S is like psychic or something, she always guessed the exact second." She then smirked playfully and adopted a more teasing tone. "But at least you can say you're better than Suzaku at something..."

Vomit, in mouth. Must bleach brain. Requiring cyanide pills. Unable to function as human being. Must not imagine Suzaku naked, must not imagine...fuck...ew. "God, mercy, please?" he prayed/begged to the skies. "Please, don't make hear my sister's sex life."

"My sex life?" Euphie asked, surprised. "Why mine? I'm talking about your lack of one." Another bullet to his pride, or whatever tatters that remained of it. Mercy was a lie, it had to be. There was no god in this forsaken world. "And why would I do anything with Suzaku?"

Wait, they didn't have sex? ' _I'm sorry god, you were with me all along!_ ' "Then how do you know his...ahem...stamina?" he wondered out loud. "Unless you also did some stalk- I mean...voyeuring on him too?"

Euphie suddenly dropped her smirk, appearing to shiver in dread. "Must bleach brain, require cyanide pills," she mumbled in horror. "Unable to function as a human being." Wow, Suzaku seems to have that effect on people. "Must not imagine Suzaku naked, must not imagine...fuck...ew." The mere mention of physical relation with the knight was bad enough for his sister, the paragon of cutesiness, to swear. Then again, unlike him, she had actually watched him in action. All he had to cope with was the thought of it, and that was bad enough. But she wasn't done. "The worst part was, he said my name once...as he..."

…

…

"B-back to my sex life." Lelouch stammered, eager to shift the topic literally anywhere else. "Who were these four girls you were mentioned?" He knew of one, well two, but the first was underage and a high ranking political figure, and the other...well...Mao's apology helped.

"What...oh!" Euphie squeaked, just as happy with the change in discussion. "Maybe another time, I need to set a few things straight." She became serious once more, scanning the cavern as if searching. "That green-haired girl, the one who was just here, where did she go…" Unbeknownst to them, the forty minutes was almost up, so the witch had left to inform Suzaku that their talk was over. Had she not, there was a good chance the knight might have barged into their discussion, and should he witness the reincarnation of the princess, it could have become extremely volatile. "Even though I was always listening to you, I could never find out her name. It was like it was being censored."

"Well, her name's C.C, she's a Code bearer," he offered. "Could that mean anything?" He was still trying to wrap his head around the idea of Euphie sharing his more recent memories. Had she been in everyone's head? Or just his? But then, how did she know about Suzaku and his...yeah. Unless he had seen it too, and then forgot. ' _Please don't tell me Suzaku roofied me or something_.' Oh god, and his father had had a memory changing Geass. Terrible thoughts, terrible thoughts indeed.

"Probably, but it doesn't matter," she said, a hint of disappointment in her voice. "D.S would never tell me her name, or really anything." She had mentioned the Dimensional Supervisor a few times. Sounds like she had a friend in C's World.

"You said D.S, right?" she nodded her confirmation. "How much do you know about her? I only just found out she existed a few moments ago."

"Oh, she's like a spokesperson." That much he knew, it was what that might entail that caught his interest. "But she has some serious power, I mean, she's the reason I'm here now! Incredibly beautiful too, reminds me a bit of that C.C girl mixed with Kallen." She grabbed onto his coat, suddenly appearing troubled.

"She found me, in that maelstrom." she continued, her voice softer and with subtle hints of fragility. "Imagine it, and endless void filled with millions of screaming souls, all trying to remember what they once were. I was so scared, I kept calling out to you, Suzaku too, just wanting to see you two again." She tightened her hold on his jacket, as if the very memory was enough to relieve the pain. "Apparently, I wanted it so bad, that D.S could hear me from her Thought Elevator in Munich." Despite being drawn into her tragic narrative, Lelouch managed to store that nugget of information away for later. That was the third Elevator he knew the location of now. "I remember when she saved me, it felt like I was grabbed by the collar, thrown out of the giant cloud of spirits. It hurt. I suddenly had to comprehend existence again, after so long just being in a tumultuous nothing. I screamed for days, apparently."

Lelouch hugged her as securely as possible as she started to tear up, desperately trying to solidify her in the present, instead of the tormenting past that still haunted her even in memory. She pressed her face into his coat, mumbling her story into his collar, just audible, but with none of the confidence she was known for. "She said...said that I could see you two, under one condition." She looked back into his eyes, conveying streams of emotion with just a second's glance. "I couldn't ever join you, or talk to you again." Lelouch tightened his hold on her once more, he himself close to joining her in tears. "It was that, or go back to nonexistence. I made my choice."

"I could watch only those who meant the world to me."

Never had Lelouch imagined he meant that much to her, even as her only true brother. Even as the only one who had supported her in full, who had lived solely in her memory, dedicated to her ideals above all else, even if not in the peaceful ways she had imagined. To be one of only two people she held above all else meant everything to him, made him feel just a bit better about himself, his choices, his path.

"But, what about Cornelia, or...well Cornelia? You two were inseparable." Surely there were more in her life than just two of them? Her sister, Nunnally, before her...disappearance, surely, someone?

"She's changed, Lulu. She isn't the sister I once had," she admitted, shocking Lelouch in her apparent acceptance of her closest siblings distance. "Even before I died, she was growing apart from me, always out of reach, lying, stalling, keeping me away. How can I be there for her when she can't even trust me? And now...she's so far gone…"

"I'm so sorry, Euphie." he cried, finally releasing his own tears. "Nellie, her little quest, it's all my-"

"Stop. Now." she cut in. "None of that now… I don't want to hear it." He begrudgingly acquiesced, though the guilt remained. She hadn't denied it, after all. "It's...nobody's really to blame. But even so, I missed her...I still do, but… _sigh_...anyway, Suzaku was the other one, obviously, but he's…he hasn't changed."

"What are you talking about, he's not the same at all!" he exclaimed, trying to see how Euphie could still see the naive, headstrong, passionate fool in the jaded, genocidal monster left in his place.

"All that's changed is his cause," she answered, her eyes locked on the ground. "He just feels more justified, now that he thinks you killed me."

"But I did, that's why-" he was cut off once more.

"V.V, he did this, he overloaded your Geass." Lelouch gasped at the revelation. That he hadn't been directly responsible for her demise took a massive weight off his conscious, left more questions than answers. "D.S told me, how he interfered with your contract with C.C, messed with you Geass." she tightened her fists, bunching his clothes within her grip. "Charles ordered it. My plan was doomed from the start, it was too naive to ever work. I guess...I guess I understand you more than before, why you did what you did, it was the only way."

"But you never had to see the horrors I did, Euphie." he reasoned. "You never had to see the bodies or the destruction, the intrigue and corruption, you could never have gotten it perfect the first time."

"True, but I never asked. No matter, what's done is done, now we move forward." she finally released him, and began walking to the cave mouth.

"Euphie, Suzaku's out there, are you ready to face him?" he asked, worried for the impending confrontation. It was inevitable, but maybe it was too sudden for her to face him so soon after her return.

"I can deal with my knight, Lulu," she answered, voice hard and firm. Her eyes narrowed in determination as if readying herself for the coming storm. Her fists tightened, fingers digging marks into the fabric of her white gloves.

"I'll make him see..."

* * *

 **A/N - Well, I know there's a lot of WAFF, but you kinda need it at this point in a story. The ropes need to be tied and tightened for Lelouch to have the support network required for his new plans. After all, you know the famous rhyme -**

 ** _'First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes war on a scale you can't imagine'_**

 **The start might be a bit slow** , **but will pick up relatively soon. The Part 0 will have the shortest chapters, as it is like a prologue, clocking up at about 3k a piece. Part 1 is looking more like 4-5k per chapter, and 2 will most likely have 7-10k updates.**

 **Up next, the confrontation between Euphie and her Knight. Will they make up? Will they get back together? Hell no, because screw him. The real question is, will Suzaku keep trying?**

 **Aenarion the White signing out.**


	3. Harpy of Britannia

**A/N - Ok, here we go. If there ever was a chapter to divide a community, here it is. Many people (hah, like many people read this…) will be slightly peeved at what I am about to do, but it makes sense in my head, so deal with it. Though I am open to criticism, suggestions, ideas and inspiration, this is my fic.**

 **Deal with it.**

 **Also, I am searching for a Beta reader, though no one has bitten. Despite being a Beta reader myself, I would love to have a second opinion, and it would speed up my writing immensely. The frequency of updates will of course decrease, but for now, just enjoy my backlog of chapters.**

 **Suggestions and requests for where this story will head are always welcome, and don't forget to review. Even if just to say how terribly _ this is.**

* * *

 **His Lilac Queen: Part 0 - Due Divergence Due Reward**

 **Chapter 3**

 **\- Harpy of Britannia -**

* * *

 _"I can deal with my knight, Lulu," she answered, voice hard and firm. Her eyes narrowed in determination as if readying herself for the coming storm. Her fists tightened, fingers digging marks into the fabric of her white gloves._

 _"I'll make him see..."_

* * *

Suzaku paced directly outside the mouth of the cave, but his eyes never left the entrance. He had searched every inch of the interior, certain that there was no other exits, only partially assured by the witch's sincerity. It was no surprise the two had a lot to discuss, judging by their actions within C's World, there was much unsaid between them. Maybe they were romantically involved, or if not already, would be by the time they exited. He shivered at the idea that Lelouch could be naked in there. Some things, were best left unimagined, especially the sex life of your mortal enemy.

Or was it best friend? What other friends did he have? Lloyd was just his employer, who valued nothing more than his simulator scores. Cecile was just as likely to discard him should he ever be discharged from duty. He had no fellows within the ranks, as all the Honorary Britannians hated him, and the purebloods treated him like filth. Kallen hated him, Shirley had suicided, and he possibly killed Nunnally. He knew for sure he had killed Guilford, so now Cornelia wouldn't be even sane around him. Schneizel unsurprisingly treated him like a tool, Villetta was with the Black Knights, and Nina was in depression and hiding because of his actions in Tokyo. Even the student council had forgotten him, and he had just watched as they were rewired like pawns for the Emperor's sick amusement. Wasn't it he that said Geass was nothing but evil, yet wholeheartedly had served its most malevolent user? Lelouch at least had purpose, no matter how violent it had been. Lelouch was the only person who had even remotely tried to be there for him, even after he had rejected him, threatened him, revealed him, thrown him in front of the Emperor for a spot in the Rounds, rewired his friends, participated in wars designed just to draw him out, and killed his own sister. He had no doubt lost whatever trust Lelouch held in him.

But Lelouch was no different. He had murdered, deceived, brainwashed, manipulated, all for his own selfish revenge. And he had forced...had forced…

Euphie, it always came back to Euphie. Just like Lelouch always did everything for Nunnally. He had forced her to start a genocide, defaced her name, destroyed her ideals, watched her kill millions, and then shot her. It was irredeemable. Just like he was irredeemable for Tokyo, Lelouch would follow him straight into hell. Of course, that would be after Suzaku works out a way to kill himself, the bastard had taken away even his own ability to suicide. Maybe if he…

"Sir Kururugi." Suzaku's head snapped to the emerging figure of Lelouch, who for some reason appeared happier than ever before. Almost as if...' _Pleeease don't tell me they actually did it in there_.' Curse his prudish nature, Suzaku couldn't even stop the blush from emerging. Something Lelouch was quite eager to point out. "Oh, does flattery get you flustered so easily? How Euphie survived you I'll never know..."

He didn't...he didn't just…

His hands were around his neck before the prince could even blink. The knights rage filled eyes bore into him, forcing his fingers tighter and tighter around his throat, all his musings forgotten in the face of this being of evil incarnate. How dare he! How _dare_ he! "How dare you speak her name!" he roared, spittle flying into Lelouch's face. "You, the one who ruined her, who _killed_ her!" He was right, there was no humanity left in him, in either of them. White and black, two sides of a coin coated in innocent blood.

But Lelouch never lost his smile. It was taunting, knowing, hiding something from him. "I think you should learn the facts before you preach them." What? What did he mean? He knew the facts, Euphie was brainwashed, he could see it in her eyes. Her lax, unfeeling expression, devoid of warmth and colour, fit the descriptions for Geass perfectly. She had even fought it off at the very end, and he could see her eyes lose their reddened hue that declared her a pawn of Lelouch. But he knew something. Lelouch had once loved Euphie, and even if he never showed remorse, he never openly joked or laughed about it, never denied it. He had learned something in that cave.

"What." he demanded. "What could you possibly claim that would change _anything_!"

Lelouch forced a chuckle through his constricted airways. "It's not so much what I could say, but rather…"

"But rather what I shall."

That voice, it was a mockery. A joke, a lie, a cruel play by the gods. A voice that brought back times of peace and simplicity, of happy memories and almost no worries. A voice that haunted his dreams and fueled his actions. A voice whose memory drove him to be the person he was today. A voice he'd both hoped and dreaded hearing again. Because that would mean...that would mean…

That he was wrong.

"Eu-euphie?" he whispered, snapping to face her, releasing his hold on her brother, and drank in her appearance. She didn't look a day older than when he last saw her, on that fateful in the Special Administrative Zone. So lost in his exuberance, he missed the narrowing of her eyes, and the tightening of her fists.

"My name is Lady Euphemia, Sir Kururugi." she spat, shocking the two men with her vehemence. Her lilac eyes bore into his emeralds, freezing the _Nihonjin_ in his tracks. "Only those who I call friend can address me in short."

"Euphie?" Lelouch breathed. "What are you doing?" Even if she had witnessed his descent, that wouldn't erase the history between the two of them, it wasn't like her! Maybe it wouldn't be rainbows and unicorns, both united again in bliss, but he never imagined this. Why was she so inflamed? Suzaku had been _living_ for her, doing everything she...everything she…

Everything she hated.

He had dedicated his life to upholding her ideals yes, but had he followed through? He had thrown Lelouch to the Emperor, to use as a stepping stone for his own success. He had sat and watched Charles toy with his friends, erasing the memories and times they all held dear. He had destroyed the Tokyo Settlement, erased millions of lives from existence, just to escape his fate. And Euphie said she had seen everything. She would have watch him burn down livelihoods in flame, trying to impose his ivory cage upon the population, selfishly forcing others into submission to suit his ego and ideals. And every time, _every time_ , she would have heard him scream…

' _This is for Euphie!'_

But still, this was Euphemia, surely she would forgive him! She cared for him, right? Even Lelouch, though he now detested Suzaku and everything he represented, could understand, and potentially let go of his resentment towards his former friend and his follies. His naive heart had led him astray, just as Lelouch's own had been stained in apathy and guilt. After all, the path to hell is paved in good intentions. But if he, Lelouch vi Britannia, a man whose whole life was centered on revenge, on his personal dream, could resolve him for his mistakes, why couldn't she?

Of course, because she loved him. Because she had entrusted herself to him, and he had shown his true colours. Colours that belied everything he was and had ever been. A selfish, idealistic, naive, brat. To self-absorbed to see the impacts his actions held. The antonym of everything Euphemia had seen in him. Even indirectly, he had lied to her. Broken her trust. She would never forgive him, never trust him, most likely never _stand_ him again. All she had to hold onto in C's World were his and Suzaku's actions, and her memories. Memories he had stained with falsehoods, with doubt of his true intentions. With the new memories created by his hate. Hate, all of it in her name.

"Euphie? What's the matter, it's me!" Suzaku obviously hadn't cottoned on to this yet, and still had yet to notice the signs of just how deep her anger ran. " _Kami_ , I've missed you so much-"

"Silence Sir Kururugi, I do not want to listen to your whinings." she roared, shutting him up once more. "Do you know how infuriating it was, watching all the pain you've caused, all the lives you've ruined!?" She was screaming now, losing all semblance of composure. "The way you treated your friends, your underlings, my memory!?" The knight began to take trembling steps back, suddenly more afraid than ever before in his life, even his ' _live'_ command was screaming out in anguish, trying to force him away from the danger this young woman represented.

"But most of all, what you did to my brother!" Venom was flowing in streams, cascading off her words and right into Suzaku's heart. What did he do to who? Lelouch? But he…

"...But he killed you!" he yelled back, desperate to calm this beast, this thing that was anything but Euphemia, the sweet teenager he spent his days with, who he fell in love with. What was this...thing? "He deserved it, he murdered the people of the SAZ!" He tried to walk back towards her, but had to force every centimetre of ground gained out of his legs. "He killed civilians with poisoned gas, he started a rebellion, he forced you to become a monster!"

"What idiocracy is this?" she spat. "Even now you're made of nothing but lies!"

How didn't she...oh course! She didn't know he was Zero! The purple suit he wore had been replaced in C's World with some strange Geass clothing. "Euphie, don't you know? He's Zero! He's the one that hurt you!"

"I knew he was Zero far before you ever did." Suzaku was silenced once again. "We talked, face to face in the SAZ, he even agreed to help me in my quest, as naive and hopeless as I now see it was." She advanced right into his face, grabbing his shaking collar and pulling him forward by his pilot suit. "And he didn't kill me." she whispered directly into his pale face. "Not by choice. Didn't Lulu just tell you to 'learn the facts before you preach them'?"

"B-but...I...I saw him shoot you! Y-you were Geassed!"

"He did, after all hope for me had vanished. Don't you see how that killed him inside, to shoot the first person he had ever loved?" she released him, throwing him harshly to the ground, and turned away. "Of course not, you were to busy in your little black and white fantasy world to see the suffering of others."

Suzaku clutched his bruised wrist, wincing in both pain and fear. She had dropped him with considerable force, force he was sure she didn't have before. His arm had been caught under him when he fell, and was most likely broken. He wasn't sure how much more he could deny the ' _live'_ command, especially after his physical injury. "B-but, G-geass…"

She spun back around, and threw him a cruel smirk. "Do you want to hear something funny about Geass, Kururugi? It's really quite interesting." I She leaned over him, imposing her smaller physique in a way that put the Emperor to shame. "I met this nice lady called D.S, and guess what she gave me?"

"My very own Geass!"

Both males were thrown into shock, or in Suzaku's case, more of it. Lelouch took it slightly better, already accepting the possibility the moment she had explained her time in C's World. But what would drive it? All Geass were created and shaped by the person's inner desires. His was from his wish for people to obey him. C.C had wanted love. Mao wanted to understand what happened in people's heads. Euphemia...what would she have desired? Alone, sitting abandoned in C's World, with only D.S for occasional company. Constantly watching the pain inflicted upon Lelouch, forever wanting to help him, but always out of reach. She would have felt...embittered. Betrayed, vindictive, furious. She would have wanted to…

Hurt those who betrayed them.

"Should I give you a demonstration, Sir Kururugi?" she taunted, cruel mirth etched into her eyes. "Or would you like to just pretend you still have a chance of getting into bed with me? Sometimes I wonder, was there any other reason for putting on that facade for so long? A bit of fun with a princess?"

"I w-would never..I could never do that to you! I love you Euphie!"

…

…

"Disgusting."

And with one word, Suzaku's world died around him, collapsing in an avalanche of broken dreams. The walls of his mindscape were already weak from guilt and anger, and finally fell down in a shower or splinters. She had rejected everything he was, his person, what he represented, what he dreamed. He had nothing. No rank, no love, no friends, no goals, and only the last threads of his sanity. He didn't even have a Knightmare anymore. He only had...only had…

...nothing.

Euphemia finally relented, both disappointed and relieved at not actually using her Geass. He had suffered, and would suffer more in time. No need to destroy him, not before he was absolved in her eyes. "From now on, you shall live in penance. Not for your father, and not for me. You shall live for the millions killed at your whim, the billions impacted by your actions. The friends betrayed in your hubris. I never got to show you my Geass, but if you're wondering…"

"It's called the Geass of Absolute Torment."

With that, she turned on her feet, and walked back into the cave, even if only to avoid his dead eyes. Dead eyes caused by her hatred. It was hard holding up that act, but it needed to be done. Needed, if Suzaku was going to become the pawn required of him, the mindless trump to help bring their plans to fruition. Though she no longer held love, or even a basic friendship with the boy, he didn't deserve the burden placed on him. He had been pressured, and he broke, hard. And because of his fragility, others suffered for him. And that was inexcusable.

…

…

It was silent outside, the wind dead and the animals scared away. Neither man dared breath. That final statement had brought avalanches of snow down their spines, stunning them both to the core. Although Lelouch's face still held the shocked disapproval he had maintained for the entire speech, Suzaku had finally broke. No tears came, in fact none had, not once did he cry. He didn't relieve himself, nor did he run away. But he had broken. His eyes were now empty, filled with nothing but self-loathing and despair. He couldn't die, couldn't live, and didn't even fully exist. He had nothing.

"I...I'm so sorry."

Surprisingly, it was Lelouch who had spoken. No man, even Suzaku, deserved that torment, not from the one they cared about most. Lelouch would have broken far sooner say, if Nunnally had done the same, rejected him for what he had done in her name. Maybe, she would've already, had she not died in Tokyo. "I didn't think she'd...god I'm so sorry."

"Stop." Suzaku whispered, squeezing his eyes shut. "Just stop." Lelouch complied instantly, unwilling to torment the man any further. "I deserve every word. Every accusation, every insult. She's right." Silence held for a seemingly endless moment, before being broken once more by the prince. "Just, please, tell me the truth."

"I...I'm guessing you mean what happened in the Zone, right?" The knight merely nodded. "I...I don't think I should be the one to tell you." Lelouch admitted. "But I blamed myself...hated myself...more than anything else. I don't know if what I say will be...what you need to hear. Nobody else was there, well, except for... _her_. But I don't think you and Euphie should ..." Suzaku nodded once more.

"There is one other, but, yeah, I suppose she'll do. Her name is D.S, she knows everything. She...watches me, what I do, what I've seen. She's...I guess it's like a Geass. But she's your best bet, unbiased and all." Lelouch cursed himself for his bumbling, but couldn't even formulate proper sentences at the sight of his shattered childhood friend. He couldn't bring himself to say what really happened, the hopelessness, horror, blunders on all their parts. But her couldn't face the tiny flicker of hope still lingering on the knight's face, hoping for the truth.

So he ran.

* * *

 **A/N - Well, that happened. Now, before you start typing away your rage, let me remind you of a few things. Suzaku is in a state of unrest and/or depression, and seeing Euphie in the flesh, before he has contemplated the idea of Lelouch using Geass, would send him into a state of euphoria, as demonstrated. However, before he could actually have a half-decent train of thought, Euphemia revealed herself to have witnessed every single failure and atrocity he had committed in her absence.**

 **The unimaginable feeling of guilt, coupled with the acceptance that you were being denied by the very person you committed them for, shell shocked the guy. And before he could recover, his spluttered admissions of love were rejected in the most brutal way imaginable. That set him off on a train of thought culminating in his acceptance of unworthiness. He would feel too ashamed to pursue her affection, and would be too busy trying to seek absolvement in her eyes and in his own.**

 **Now, that in itself could come undone should he have been given the opportunity to consider foul play. But Suzaku knows that Geass is a one time only thing, due to his knowledge of the spying operation centred on Lelouch during his amnesia-brainwash period. He knows that Viletta was chosen** _ **because**_ **she had been Geassed before. He also knows, from the confrontation with the Emperor, that it doesn't work on other Geass users. So because he knows she was already Geassed, and then when Euphe admits to both knowing about Geass, and having her own, it sets off another part of the butterfly effect that culminates in his breaking.**

 **Lelouch's final admission of guilt and horror at his treatment only cemented this, as it consciously and subconsciously informed him that this wasn't his intention.**

 **So suck it and weep, or laugh and smile, because Suzaku is now a wreck. He won't be a puppet, or anything too dark, but rather a quieter, darker, guiltier version of Akito. If you actually made it through to this sentence, past that entire explanation/rant, good job. I like you.**

 **I like you a lot.**


	4. Wreckage of the Storm

**A/N - Well, the feedback from the last chapter was better than expected, and kudos to anyone who left a review, they really help. Also, yes, I know that I said that Geass doesn't work on other Geass users, which is absolute horse_, and I apologise. It obviously does, seeing as Lelouch got so badly pwned by his dad.**

 **This is the last of the quick updates, and the rest will probably come out once or twice a week. This is also the last chapter of Part 0, and Part 1 will be released next week.**

 **But enough from me, let's push some drinks down the aisle and some scenery past the window.**

* * *

 **His Lilac Queen: Part 0 - Due Divergence, Due Reward**

 **Chapter 4**

 **\- Wreckage of the Storm -**

* * *

"What the fuck are you doing?!"

Catching up to his sister's retreating form, Lelouch roughly spun her around to face him, unable to comprehend the cause for her violent reaction. The cold drafts of the night had plastered her rose hair around her face, strands catching in the tears that covered her cheeks. No longer were her eyes blazing with contempt, no longer did she carry herself with the fury of a harpy, tearing into its prey. Her frame was twitching and trembling, as if in shock from her own actions. This wasn't the same daemon he had unleashed on his childhood friend mere moments ago.

"What happened to you Euphie, this isn't like you!" he demanded, undeterred by her sudden meek demeanour. "What aren't you telling me, what did he do?" There was something he didn't know, something she was hiding. No lover's spat could have instigated such a confrontation. She had been in rage before he had even spoken her name, planning to crush him before she even exited the cave. The man had never had a chance.

"Nothing, there is nothing else." Her eyes betrayed her, though, tearing up even as they glanced down to her feet. Intelligent though she may be, his sister was an atrocious liar. "He didn't do anything you don't know about. I just...I…"

"You what Euphie, felt like destroying him!" he roared, spinning around to face the cavern walls, unable to coalesce the image of his gentle sister with the screaming nightmare that had inhabited her body. "Yes he was a fool, yes he was a murderer, but so am I! He did nothing to deserve that torture."

"Pain makes a good teacher," she stated, her cold words undermined by the waver in her tone. She couldn't hold even these shambles of a mask for long. "He was in need of a small lesson." He needed it, they needed it, if he was going to become the person she desired him to be.

"Then so am I!" Lelouch was finished, no longer willing to act into her weak little facade, he wanted answers. Something was driving her, more than her hatred, or the Japanese boy's actions in her name. She knew something, and he would find it. "I have committed evils just as horrendous as his, I have murdered, manipulated, lied, cheated, stole...how am I absolved in your eyes!? Brother or not, I deserve your scorn as much as he does."

"I NEEDED HIM, OK!" she screamed, unable to stand in the face of her brother's self-loathing, his misdirected anger. Too many days she had spent watching him accept the weight of the world, holding it high despite the shattering toll on his mind. Too many nights wishing to console him, to absolve him, to protect him, far too many to allow this stupid feud to go between them. "We need him, and he needs us."

"For what, a punching bag? What does that even mean?" Euphie just squeezed her eyes shut, lowered her head, and released the floodgates, forever warping his opinion of her, proving just how different she had become.

"As a weapon!"

…

…

Lelouch could only gape at his sister, unwilling to accept the words ringing in his ears, echoing against the cavern walls, etched in his mind. She had been planning it since the start, the right words to break him down, to shatter his desires, leaving only a penitent martyr in its place. Now that he had nothing, the knight wished for nothing more than absolution in the eyes of his former lover. Willing to bend to any shape, to accept any challenge, destroy anything in his way. No longer did he fight for her dreams, for her affection, now he lived only for the sins he had committed in her name, staining her along with him. His sister, his loving, gentle innocent sister, had just played Suzaku like a flute. Driving him down, to build him back up, all for her own designs.

"And after he is your 'weapon, what then?'" he spat in disgust, trying to wind her up, get her to spill her plans. Each false accusation bit him as hard as it did unto her. "Does he become your perfect slave, following you around like a dog, leaning over backwards for your whims? Will he ever really be absolved, or is he just a little pleasure slave in your eyes?"

*SMACK*

"Don't you dare," she screamed, as his own hand flew to his now-bruised face. "Do you know how much that hurt, to say those things? Do you really think I could be that cruel, the inhumane? He meant the world to me, but he ruined it for himself. I don't love that man with any ounce of my being, but you're right, he didn't deserve that. He went astray, and collapsed under the pressure others place upon him. I won't forgive him, not yet, but no one is beyond redemption."

"...What is there to gain from this, Euphie," he whispered, dropping the false anger he had thrown her way, his eyes conveying the sadness he felt as he finally accepted and lamented the loss of his sister's innocence, proof that Nellie and he had failed to protect her from the horrors of the world. "Where does Suzaku go, where do we go? What is it that you want to do? What would need him to be rewired into a lifeless weapon, rather than a living human?"

Caught out by his jarring change of attitude, she almost missed the mournful expression Lelouch had adopted, as she looked into his violet eyes. This was the part of her she wished to hide from his haunting gaze, to never see the true sadness marring his perfect orbs, a grief formed from his own inability to protect her. The side of her that had spent months trapped in purgatory, learning from him, training herself, planning, all to make manifest his dream for a better world. But nothing lasts forever, for she had known that the last remnants of her childhood, her naivety, her innocence truly had left her, somewhere between her death and rebirth. He just had to accept that.

"Euphie...please," he begged, dropping his head, voice barely above a breath of wind, blowing painfully against her, his anguish staining his words, just like his soul. "Why...what do we do? I have nothing. The Knights rejected me, the Empire is in shambles, my pawns all captured. Tell me...please."

"Stop, now," she whispered firmly, halting his tirade of resignation. "You aren't alone, surely a genius like you can see that." She grabbed his cheek, redirecting his gaze back at her, wiping the tear that had fallen down his cheek. Stroking his face, she continued. "C.C is still with you, and she wouldn't leave you for the world. Jeremiah, Sayoko, they would give their lives, just to see your dreams come to life. And do you really think Kallen turned her back on you? She loves you, dummy, she would be here with us right now if she knew. Don't whine and wail that pitiful rubbish when you have friends right under your nose. And never forget..." She touched his face with her other hand, holding his head firmly in place with a featherlight touch. Leaning in closer, she closed her eyes, her breathless whisper resonating louder than a host of fireworks.

"...You have me."

Leaning in closer, she was but centimetres away when a sly voice reverberated down the tunnel, disrupting her moment. "Hey boya, is everything alright over there? I heard some shouting outside, and I thought the lovers might be having a spat…" C.C halted her question as she emerged from deeper within, and noticed the compromising position the two were in, but more importantly the pure fury radiating off of the pinkette princess. A small spike of jealousy twitching within her, she slowly sashayed over to the pair, hanging off of her warlock's shoulder, all but moulding herself to him. "Is something wrong, my prince?" she asked in a sickeningly innocent, honest voice, causing Euphie to wretch in disgust. Lelouch smiled slightly, missing the two's exchange, before shaking his head.

"No, everything is fine, my witch." Slyly looking over to the pissed princess, she held up the victory sign, causing a vein to tick above her lilac eye. ' _Mine_.' The unspoken claim was heavy in the air, yet Euphie could do nothing to deny it, not with Lelouch right there. She had seen them in C's World after all, and knew of the history between them. How could she refuse them what they both definitely deserved? Easily, and with good cause. But for now, she stood down, merely pouting in disappointment.

"You were right when you said the empire is in shambles," she said instead, the serious edge in her voice catching the pair off guard. "The death of the Emperor will only make it worse. The last thing we need now is an inheritance fight amongst our siblings. The nation needs a leader, and fast."

C.C quickly put the pieces together, smiling deviously at the girl's plan. "...So we give them one, and Geass those who oppose."

"Exactly, and after they all bow down to our violet Emperor, we fix this broken empire from the top down. None will be able to oppose your whim, and now that Suzaku's on our side, we already have the perfect knight to carry out our word." she continued, lilac eyes shining with anticipation and pride.

"There will many who oppose you," C.C pointed out, her face clouded in thought. "We can't Geass everyone, and even if we do, we would be no better than Charles."

"We need allies, people who will legitimise our ascension on their behalf. And every knight against us is a pawn for Schneizel. We need to find everyone we can, and bring them to our side." Euphie continued, her head already spinning with possible candidates. They were not the only ones who held issue with the state of the Empire, and with the right words and promises, even armies can be swayed.

"And your plan…" Lelouch asked, finally able to slip a word into their rapid conversation.

"Simple, we ask them." They replied in sync.

"Surely there is more to it than that…"

But his sister had already departed, exiting the cave and walking to the near-comatose Suzaku. He ran after her, both eager and afraid to see their next confrontation. Maybe it really was as simple as asking, after all, Lelouch had a tendency to overthink things. Coughing to gain his attention, Euphie pretended to take no notice of the slight flinch the knight had when he saw her. "Sir Kururugi, will you serve Emperor Lelouch, in order to create a better world?"

He stared blankly in response, switching his gaze between the princess and the prince, before lowering his eyes. If he followed her brother, he could start earning her absolution, and that meant more to him than anything else. But really, it's not like he had anything else to lose. Uncaring that he was about to sign his soul away on a blank check, he nodded back at them.

"...Yes...my lord."

* * *

 **A/N - Well, that was a shorter one, but it was required. I know, there has been no action yet, but trust me, it really kicks off next part, and only builds from there.**

 **No, I said this before, this is not a normal harem. Do you really think that someone like Lelouch, who hated his father, would want to actively court or engage multiple wives? It will be a matter or circumstance, and we'll see where it goes from there.**

 **Leave a review for who _you_ think should become an Empress, and I'll work it out. But otherwise...**

 **Aenarion the White, singing out.**


End file.
